Release

CBSSports.com to Broadcast Final Four -- Live Online For First Time

Site caps off record growth with first live webcast of a major U.S. sporting event

 

SAN ANTONIO, TX, April 3, 2008 - For the first time, CBSSports.com, in partnership with CBS Sports, CBS College Sports Network and the NCAA® will provide a live online broadcast of the Final Four and Championship game of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship via their NCAA March Madness® on Demand video player. It will be the first time ever that a major U.S. sporting event has been shown live and in its entirety on the Internet.

 

"It's a testament to the vision that the NCAA and CBS had for NCAA March Madness on Demand that we're continuing to make history around this event," said Jason Kint, Senior Vice President and General Manager, CBSSports.com. "The consumer and advertising success story we've written by being the first to offer a live online broadcast of a major sporting event and on a complementary platform to television is surely something that other leagues and networks will look to replicate in the future."

 

Traffic figures for NCAA March Madness on Demand for the first eight days (First Round through Elite 8) of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship have shown tremendous growth year-over-year. In total, there have been 4,333,207 total unique visitors to the NCAA March Madness on Demand video player, a 147% increase over 2007 figures. (1,753,192 unique visitors)

 

2008 NCAA March Madness on Demand traffic figures through Sunday, March 30

  

  • 4,333,207 total unique visitors to the NCAA March Madness on Demand video player (2007 figure - 3/15/07 through 3/25/07 - was 1,753,192 - 147% growth)

 

  • Total minutes of live streaming video and audio consumed in the first eight days of the tournament: 4,588,993 total hours (275,339,580 minutes). This figure surpasses the entire 2007 total of minutes of live video and audio consumption (2,716,236 hours - 162,974,160 minutes) resulting in 69% year-over-year growth and counting.

 

  • Total hours of consumption for the 2008 Sweet 16 (March 27 & 28) were up 111% vs. the 2007 Sweet 16. (589,308 vs. 278,810)

 

  • The average stream time for the Elite 8 (March 29 & 30) was over 32 minutes.

 

  • 2,442,705 clicks of the "Boss Button" (figure not available for 2007)

 

  • Nearly 3.7 million fans are currently playing in CBSSports.com bracket games across the web, including the largest bracket application on Facebook. The total number CBSSports.com brackets participants is up 65% from 2007. Of the approximately 500,000 fans playing in the CBSSports.com Bracket Challenge, over 51,000 users correctly predicted the four teams that have advanced to the 2008 Final Four.

 

  • 571,297 VIP registrants (2007 figure was 468,720 - 22% growth)

 

A large factor in the year-over-year traffic escalation with NCAA March Madness on Demand is the decision CBSSports.com made to drop registration requirements for the product, giving fans immediate admission to the video player. This one-click access gives CBSSports.com the ability to distribute links to NCAA March Madness on Demand to a network of more than 200 sites across the Internet, including major sports websites such as ESPN.com, Yahoo! Sports and SI.com, leading social sites like Facebook, online video leader YouTube as well as the CBS Audience Network, including sites for CBS television and radio affiliates.

 

2008 marks the first time that NCAA March Madness on Demand gives users the ability to view all 63 games of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship, from the first round of the tournament through the Men's Final Four® in San Antonio, including the Championship game. NCAA March Madness on Demand also gives users the option to listen to live play-by-play audio from Westwood One Radio for all games of the tournament.

 

Since its inception in 2003, NCAA March Madness on Demand has traditionally provided live video of 56 games from the first round through the regional semifinals of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship as they are broadcast by CBS Sports, with local broadcasts being subject to blackouts.

 

Full game video and audio archives and highlight packages will be available on demand for all games of the tournament via the NCAA March Madness on Demand player. Additionally, highlight packages are available on the CBS Interactive Audience Network as well as YouTube. The NCAA March Madness on Demand player and archival footage are accessible through April 21.

 

Free access to 2008 NCAA March Madness on Demand is made possible by presenting sponsors and NCAA Corporate Champions AT&T, Coca-Cola, and Pontiac.

 

Click here to access the official logo for 2008 March Madness on Demand:

http://images.sportsline.com/images/info/ir/press/2008/08MMODlogo.jpg

 

Click here to see a mockup of the 2008 March Madness on Demand video player:

http://images.sportsline.com/images/info/ir/press/2008/08MMODplayer.jpg

 

CBSSports.com and CBS Sports production of NCAA March Madness on Demand was awarded an Emmy at the 59th Annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards on January 7th of this year for Outstanding Achievement in Advanced Media Technology for Synchronous Enhancement of Original Television Content For Interactive Use.

 

Availability of NCAA March Madness on Demand is subject to capacity restrictions. Certain terms and restrictions apply. Full terms at http://www.ncaasports.com/info/tos/mmod/

  

About CBSSports.com

 

CBSSports.com is at the leading edge of media companies providing Internet sports content, Fantasy sports and e-commerce. CBSSports.com is a member of the CBS family and a part of CBS Interactive. Formerly known as CBS SportsLine.com, in August of 2007 the company changed its name to CBSSports.com. The change marked the evolution of the company into a multi-platform brand offering premier broadcast, online and mobile sports content. The change to CBSSports.com gives advertisers the ability to associate with the CBS Sports brand and reach sports fans no matter where they are, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

 

For more information about CBSSports.com and for the latest sports news, scores and expert analysis, please visit cbssports.com.

 

More information about CBS and its businesses is available at http://www.cbscorporation.com/.

 

About the NCAA

 

The NCAA is a membership-led nonprofit association of colleges and universities committed to supporting academic and athletics opportunities for more than 380,000 student-athletes at more than 1,000 member colleges and universities. Each year, more than 54,000 student-athletes compete in NCAA championships in Divisions I, II and III sports. Visit http://www.cbspressexpress.com/siteadmin/Local%20Settings/Temporary%20Internet%20Files/OLK78/MAJOR%20EVENTS/MMOD/2008/MAJOR%20EVENTS/MMOD/2008/www.ncaa.org and http://www.cbspressexpress.com/siteadmin/Local%20Settings/Temporary%20Internet%20Files/OLK78/MAJOR%20EVENTS/MMOD/2008/MAJOR%20EVENTS/MMOD/2008/www.ncaa.com for more details about the Association, its goals and members and corporate partnerships that help support programs for student-athletes.

 

The NCAA is proud to have the following elite companies as official Corporate Champions-AT&T, Coca-Cola and Pontiac-and the following elite companies as official Corporate Partners-DiGiorno, Enterprise, The Hartford, Lowe's, Sheraton and State Farm.

 

NCAA, Final Four, and March Madness are trademarks owned or licensed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

 

For Information Contact:

 

Alex Riethmiller - CBSSports.com

CBS Sports Press Office                 

Madero Ballroom - Westin Riverwalk         

Office:  210.242.4325 

Cell:     954.599.4154

ariethmiller@cbs.com